


That One Time Neil Stopped a Coup

by RedHeadFireBred



Series: That One Time Neil Ended Up In a Fairy Tale [5]
Category: All For The Game - Nora Sakavic
Genre: Adventure, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Magic, Alternate Universe - No Exy (All For The Game), Alternate Universe - Royalty, Andrew Minyard Has Feelings, Andrew Minyard Loves Neil Josten, Andrew is a swan this entire fic again yahoooo, Crack Treated Seriously, Cuddling & Snuggling, Curse Breaking, Curses, Domestic Fluff, Elves, F/F, Fairy Tale Curses, Fairy Tale Elements, Falling In Love, Fantasy, Fluff, Fluff and Crack, Half-Elf Kevin Day, Half-Elves, Horseback Riding, Horses, Idiots in Love, Knight Kevin Day, Language Barrier, Lebedínoye Ózero | Swan Lake References, M/M, Magic, Neil Josten Is an Idiot, No cliffhanger this time, Not Beta Read, Oblivious Neil Josten, POV Neil Josten, Platonic Cuddling, Potions, Prince Aaron Minyard, Prince Andrew Minyard, Princes & Princesses, Protective Andrew Minyard, Royalty, Soft Andrew Minyard, Soft Neil Josten/Andrew Minyard, Stressed Kevin Day, Swearing, Swords & Sorcery, Treason, True Love, Witch Neil Josten, Witchcraft, Witches, andrew is the swan princess, but theyre finally getting somewhere, i know it was bad the other parts but its especially bad now, lots of honking, no beta we die like men, still crack but with more fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-24
Updated: 2021-01-24
Packaged: 2021-03-16 01:15:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,442
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28948023
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RedHeadFireBred/pseuds/RedHeadFireBred
Summary: Following what happened in the E'Allen Kingdom, Neil rides back to Palmetto, feeling freer than he ever has before. He intends to return to the palace as soon as possible to tell Aaron his message was delivered and find Kevin so they can start their search for Riko, but makes a stop along the way at Allison's estate. There he finds himself surrounded by people who genuinely love and care about him, who want to help him through the trauma he went through.~*~Or, Andrew apparently doesn't care that this curse could take his life, Neil gets the support he needs, and Matt officially adopts him.NOTE: There are four parts before this I recommend reading to understand what's going on!
Relationships: Allison Reynolds/Renee Walker (All For The Game), Neil Josten/Andrew Minyard
Series: That One Time Neil Ended Up In a Fairy Tale [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2092800
Comments: 25
Kudos: 194





	That One Time Neil Stopped a Coup

**Author's Note:**

> THANK GOD WE'RE BACK TO FLUFF OMFG

The ride back to Palmetto felt freeing. It was long, sure, and the sunset had just begun by the time Neil had finished riding through the mountain path, but he’d never felt more alive. Not even when he was living comfortably in his cottage in the Enchanted Woods or when he’d met his new friends. Now that he knew all he had to do to live was find Riko, he felt better than he ever had before. He just couldn’t keep the smile off his face as they made it through the mountain pass.

By then it was evening. Not even Neil was dumb enough to keep going by then, mostly because his burns had gone from aching to itching and he wanted to stop traveling. He remembered talking to Allison about her house near the mountains and hoped she and Renee wouldn’t mind if he stopped there for the night. He probably wouldn’t sleep, but his horse needed the rest and Neil wanted to at least wash the dirt out of his hair.

There was a clear road that led to Allison’s estate. Like she said, it was tucked near the mountains and appeared to be a lavish farm. There was a large wooden fence surrounding some crops on either side of the road, which led to a two story house made of fieldstone and dark wood. To the right of the home was a stable and large pond. Leading up to the house was a large courtyard with an old looking fountain surrounded by large bushes and flowers. Neil liked the look of the place and hoped Esprit’s loud neigh was her agreeing with him.

Neil’s smile got brighter when he slowed to a stop before the stables. Standing there was Allison, Matt and Kevin, each of whom watched his approach with wide eyes. When Esprit stopped Neil raised a bandaged hand to wave. “Hi,” he greeted them.

“Holy _shit,_ Neil are you okay?” Matt said, rushing towards him. He held out a hand Neil gratefully took to get out of the saddle, wincing once he was back on his two feet.

“I’m fine,” he replied, and for once he meant it. When he went to lead Esprit in the stable, Matt took the horse’s reins and told him he’d take care of it. Allison walked up to him, worry clear on her face.

“What happened to you?” she asked. “Do you need help? Oh, I bet Renee could do something about those…”

“Allison, I’m really fine,” Neil said, glancing towards Kevin. To be honest he didn’t feel great physically, but just the thought that he was back here at all made him feel better. He knew there was going to be a long road to recovery, but that wasn’t what he was concerned about. “Why are you here?” he asked Kevin.

“You used your charm,” Kevin replied.

“Oh, yeah,” Neil mumbled. He’d forgotten about that, since it felt like so long ago. “Where’s Andrew?”

“Waiting for me to finish getting ready,” Kevin said, a tiny smile rising on his face. “I guess that’s not necessary, anymore.”

Neil was confused. “Ready for what?”

Allison let out a groan. “You’re lucky you’re pretty,” she said, turning towards her estate. “I’m letting the cooks know we need more food.”

“We were coming to rescue you,” Kevin explained once Allison had left.

“Oh,” Neil said with a frown. “How would you have found me?”

“Renee was trying to help with that.” Kevin pointed to the bandages. “What did they do to you?”

“Oh, this is all me.” Neil raised one arm as though that would help Kevin understand. “Magic.”

Kevin nodded once. “Andrew’s inside with Renee. You should see him.” 

Neil followed him inside the house. Right after the front doors was a modest but elegant entry hall, with stairs leading to the upper floors. Neil heard voices deeper inside the house coupled with a single honk, which brought his smile back. He quickly tugged off his boots, not wanting to dirty the floors after all the traveling he did. He followed the sounds, walking down the hallway to get to a large living room, where everyone else was. Dan was seated in an armchair, dressed in simple clothes rather than her armor like Matt was wearing. Renee was wearing a modest dress and sat on the large sky blue couch with Andrew at her side.

They looked up when he walked in, and for a moment seemed frozen with shock. Kevin came up behind Neil but didn’t make to enter the room. “Hey,” Neil said, attempting a smile. It didn’t quite make it past a grimace since he couldn’t keep his eyes off of Andrew who _was probably dying again._

“Neil - !” Dan began. She was cut off by Andrew’s loud honk as he flapped his wings and rushed towards the doorway. Neil dropped to his knees as his friend made it to him, tucking his wings back to his side and glaring.

“You shouldn’t be here,” Neil tried to scold. Andrew honked at him and nipped the air in front of his face, as though he’d gone for Neil’s nose. “I mean it,” Neil continued, raising a bandaged hand towards Andrew’s head. The swan let him pet the feathers there but the glaring never stopped. “The longer you’re away from the lake, the more the curse kills you.”

“He knows,” Renee spoke up. That only made Neil give Andrew a concerned look. He _knew_ yet he was still here?

“I told him everything,” Kevin said, walking around the two on the ground to sit on the nearest couch. “He made it clear we were coming after you.”

“Even though you could die?” Neil asked Andrew, who’s glare became an unimpressed look. He honked more softly, then crowded closer, looking over Neil’s arms as though he was sniffing them, or something. Neil didn’t really care and let him look his fill, shifting to give Andrew more room as he climbed into Neil’s lap. After at least a full minute Andrew’s beak lightly nudged the bandages on Neil’s cheeks. “I’m fine,” Neil told him, smiling through the pain.

Andrew clearly didn’t buy it, but he couldn’t talk, so he just honked a few times. He probably scolded Neil, but that was okay. 

“How did you get those?” Dan asked. She had stood up and was crossing her arms, but she didn’t seem upset. At least, not at Neil.

“My magic,” Neil explained. He didn’t miss the way Renee tensed. “If you don’t use it right, it’ll burn you up from the inside-out.”

Everyone seemed uncomfortable at that. Neil avoided their gazes by focusing on Andrew instead. After a few seconds the pale-gold swan settled more in his lap, finally breaking their eye contact to tuck his face near Neil’s chest. The tension Neil didn’t realize was in his shoulders suddenly left, and for the first time since he’d gone on his own he felt he could relax, just a little bit. He was surrounded by people he could trust - people he’d fought with, people that actually _wanted_ to be his friends.

He felt he owed them something. And to probably warn them about Riko. “I think you’ve guessed,” Neil began, voice just above a whisper, as he watched Renee. “I’m not a witch.”

“I did,” Renee said back, voice not as quiet but gentle. 

Everyone else remained silent, and didn’t push him to start. It took a moment, but Neil found that he _wanted_ to explain. “I come from a long line of sorcerers and enchantresses. My mother was one, and she taught me what she knew, but she mostly warned me not to use it. That’s why I turned to witchcraft: it sates my magic so it doesn’t destroy me, but in turn I’m not drawing attention to myself or developing what I can do just for someone to use me as some kind of weapon.”

“Someone would do that?” Dan asked. She sounded shocked, and looked full of sympathy.

“You don’t know many magic users, do you?” Neil asked.

“If you can get a magic user on your side, it’s very easy to gain power,” Renee explained. “That’s why they first invented court magicians. Some lords will seek out those with powerful magic and use them.”

“Sometimes you can bind one to you,” Neil said, looking down at Andrew, who was staring back at him. “Not willingly - at least, not usually, but some magic users do seek out those kinds of things.” Neil paused for a moment, then continued, “It’s also possible to steal magic.”

“Steal magic?” Renee asked. Her tone was still gentle, but she now seemed more concerned. “I’ve never heard of that before.”

“Neither did I.” Neil now turned to Kevin. “My real name is Nathaniel Wesninski.”

If Kevin was surprised, he didn’t quite look it. He sucked in a deep breath and his gaze got more guarded, but that was about it. He didn’t say anything in response, either, but Neil supposed that was a lot to take in for the moment. 

“Your name is Nathaniel?” Matt asked. He and Allison entered the living space through a different doorway, each standing near the couch Renee sat at. Andrew added to the question with a loud honk, the unimpressed look once again in his eyes. 

“You don’t like it?” Neil teasingly asked, mostly to Andrew. He sobered up after a few seconds. “I’m not Nathaniel. I’m Neil.”

It probably didn’t make sense to anyone, but they didn’t question it or draw attention to it, which made Neil feel just a little bit better. He wasn’t quite ready to get into how complicated his aliases were, especially with how important they were to him. Maybe one day he could get around to that.

“Neil,” Renee spoke up, bringing his attention back. “What do you mean, ‘stealing magic’?”

“Oh, that’s why I was delayed,” he said. He began to explain what had happened at Baltimore: how he’d run into Lola, Romero and Jackson by chance and tried to use his magic to escape, but failed and instead just gave himself the scars. How his father had stolen some of his magic, explaining that he’d been doing it for a while and that it all went to Riko. How his uncle had burst in and rescued him, then got him an audience with Ichirou, but Riko had slipped away.

“How could he have…?” Kevin mumbled, sitting down. He let out a loud groan and covered his face with his hands.

“Magic, probably,” Neil offered. “Kevin, Ichirou hasn’t forgotten about you being part of the Ravens.”

Kevin didn’t look surprised, just scared at the news. “And…?”

“And if we find Riko and bring him back, he’s willing to let us live,” Neil explained. “We need to complete a blood oath to never speak about Evermore.”

The relief on Kevin’s face was blinding. He would’ve become a puddle on the floor if he could, Neil was sure. Any tension Kevin had from the moment Neil had revealed his real name was finally gone. “Just find Riko,” Kevin said back, a tiny smile on his face.

Andrew honked. “Yeah, Andrew’s right,” Allison spoke up, earning a glare. “Finding Riko doesn’t sound like an easy task.”

“Oh, probably not,” Neil agreed, lightly petting the feathers at the base of Andrew’s neck to try to calm him down. Right now wasn’t the time for an angry bird to be attacking anyone. “But we did what we needed to. And I’m willing to bet it won’t be hard to get Aaron what he needs to kick Luther out.”

Nobody else seemed to share that sentiment. “Just accusations won’t work,” Dan reminded him. “And in case you're blind to the bird in your lap, Andrew can’t exactly talk right now.”

“Not that - if Riko has stolen magic, I’m willing to bet Luther does too,” Neil said. “He knows Aaron was against him taking power since he was taking so much effort to look for Andrew. So, he would’ve gotten prepared in case he couldn’t take the throne naturally.”

“Huh,” Kevin huffed. 

Andrew nudged Neil’s chest, bringing the witch’s attention back to him. For a moment he smiled, then it fell short. But not because of the pain on his face - it was because of a different pain he was now feeling. “I’m...sorry I lied to you,” he told Andrew, unable to meet his eyes. “I just didn’t want to be Nathaniel, anymore. Not because my mom made me, but because _I_ wanted to be someone else. I want to be Neil.”

There was a moment of silence. Then, Andrew moved his head and lightly nipped at Neil’s fingertips, like he often did as though to offer reassurance. It hurt, and Andrew clearly knew that, but Neil supposed it was a ‘tough love’ kind of moment.

“Ow,” he complained anyways.

“Who said that has to change?” Matt asked. He stepped closer and ruffled Neil’s hair. “Just so you know, we’re not letting you go anywhere.”

“Yeah,” Allison agreed. “You’re stuck with us now, kiddo.”

“Why do I feel like I’m being kidnapped?” Neil asked Andrew.

“Not kidnapped,” Matt argued. “Adopted. Welcome to the family of losers.”

Maybe it was because he’d been alone for so long that made Neil feel like he was just fine with joining a family again.

~*~

“So, we need to go back to Foxhole,” Neil said to Kevin about thirty minutes later. He’d made a potion to help with the pain he still felt in the burns, which allowed him to do more things. Like carry Andrew around, who had pretty much stuck to his side since he’d come back. In the past Andrew had never allowed that, but when he refused to get out of Neil’s lap earlier and had been threatened with getting carried around, he hadn’t budged like he would any other time. So now Neil was carrying around a large pale-gold swan everywhere he went for the past half hour. He didn’t mind.

“Yes,” Kevin agreed, continuing to pour himself a glass of...some alcohol, by the smell of it. “Tomorrow.”

“No, we have to get Andrew back to the lake,” Neil argued, glaring down at his friend, who was carefully avoiding the gaze. “And we should tell Aaron we did what he wanted.”

“Tomorrow,” Kevin repeated, taking a long gulp from the glass he’d just poured.

“You can’t ride if you’re drunk,” Neil complained in a mumble.

“Exactly. This way you can stop rushing us and finally go to sleep.”

“I slept,” Neil tried to argue. Andrew finally honked and gave the witch a stern look.

“You’re not fooling anyone,” Kevin said. He held out the bottle he had in offer, but Neil’s hands were full of Andrew so he didn’t bother trying to reach for it. After a few seconds Kevin put it down. “Eat an actual meal, get a few hours of sleep, and we’ll leave tomorrow morning.”

Neil didn’t like it, but he wasn’t going to win here. And if he tried riding off on his own his new “family” would probably just find him and drag him back. And...eating and sleeping sounded really nice right now. “Fine,” he relented, deciding he didn’t want to stick around and watch Kevin drink. He walked towards the large glass doors that led to a back patio and awkwardly opened them, quickly finding a seat in the shade to sit in. Andrew settled in his lap and tucked his head under his wing, as though he was going to take a nap.

Despite wanting to tease Andrew for being lazy or something, Neil knew that wasn’t the case, here. He hadn’t talked with Kevin yet about Andrew’s reaction to waking up after everything had gone to shit, but he had a feeling he knew exactly what had gone down. Andrew wasn’t being subtle at all in trying to stick close as though Neil would suddenly run away again, and the witch didn’t know how to tell his friend that was the last thing on his mind right now. Sure when he and Kevin would go off to try and find Riko they’d have to separate again, but right now…

“I’m mad at you,” Neil said quietly. Andrew let out a tiny huff. “I mean it. I made Kevin take you back before because you were dying, and now we’re right back where we were before.”

If Andrew cared, he didn’t show it, which was exactly the problem. Clearly the prince either had some sort of death wish or he just didn’t care about his own health and safety. Neil was now concerned he was going to die from worry before anyone else could get to him.

“I’m not going anywhere,” Neil finally said. Andrew looked up and stared, but not with a glare or anything else. He was just listening. “I mean it,” Neil added, mostly for his own benefit, because he _does_ mean it. “I’m done running.”

Still no noises, but Neil didn’t need them. It was a bit difficult to read on Andrew’s face when he was a swan, but he could manage. Andrew clearly understood and probably didn’t need the words spoken aloud like Neil did, but they seemed to help. He settled down again, this time to really take a nap. The curse was probably taking a lot of his energy.

“You can sleep,” Neil told him. “I’ll make sure nobody annoys you.”

He didn’t have to do much work, given that nobody came out other than to pass towards the fields. Allison had a few servants at the estate: a cook, a few maids and some people that worked on the farm, who lived there year round. It was a nice place with lots of sunlight and amazing views, but Neil wasn’t sure he’d be able to live there forever. He found himself getting a bit homesick, thinking about his cottage that he wouldn’t be able to return to for a while yet.

They spent a while out there. Neil didn’t fall asleep but he did doze, blinking awake with a pounding heart once in a while. He tried not to startle or jostle Andrew and thought he succeeded until he finally realized Andrew had never gone to sleep in the first place, and that instead he was staring through a few feathers. Neil didn’t have it in him to feel annoyed, but instead felt comforted that his friend was keeping watch.

Dan interrupted their weird relaxation to tell them that dinner was ready. “Dinner” was an understatement - it looked more like a feast at a party to Neil. There were meats and breads and soups and other things he didn’t even know the names to. Andrew had his own chair at Neil’s side, and he ended up eating two whole loaves of bread on his own. Neil didn’t have that much of an appetite, but he ended up enjoying the soup and stuck to that.

After the meal Matt rounded the table and lightly gripped Neil’s shoulder, giving him a smile. “You should go to bed, Neil.”

“I’m not that tired,” Neil tried to argue, but he’d been pushing down yawns for the past half hour and was pretty sure his eyes were drooping. 

“Well, _we’re_ tired,” Matt told him, looking around the table. “We’re leaving early tomorrow, right? So you have to get more than two hours tonight.”

Neil could hear the accusation. “I slept more than two hours last night,” he grumbled. “I think.”

“Go on.”

“I’m starting to think when you said adopted, you actually meant adopted.”

Leaving the dining room with a few waves, Neil started towards the bedroom Allison had pointed out to him earlier. It was on the first floor and the only furniture inside was a large double bed pushed against the wall with a window and wardrobe. Andrew followed him inside, flying up to the mattress and settling down. Neil smiled at him and went for his pack, where the clothes his uncle had loaned him before were kept, and changed. After that he settled down on the bed, leaning against the windowsill to stare at the sky. The sun had just finished setting.

“This doesn’t feel real,” Neil whispered. There was no answer for a moment other than the rustling of the blankets. Neil turned to watch Andrew waddle to the nearest pillow and pull on it with his beak, giving it a tiny shake. Then he grabbed the blankets and tried to pull them down the mattress. “Alright, I think I get it,” Neil said with a tiny laugh.

He settled down, feeling the call to sleep as soon as his head hit the pillow. It was strange because he’d thought it would take a lot for him to finally go to sleep again. The exhaustion of traveling and what had happened the night before had finally caught up, it would seem. Andrew waddled to the other pillow and sat down on it, watching Neil.

“I can’t wait until you’re human again,” Neil mumbled into the pillow, letting himself relax while he rambled. “I miss talking to you. Not that it isn’t nice with you like this, but…” Neil closed his eyes. “It’s not the same.”

He’d almost drifted off by the time Andrew had decided to respond. He let out a soft honk - the quietest one yet - and bumped his head against Neil’s forehead. The witch opened his eyes again and watched Andrew retreat back to his spot, smiling to himself. If Andrew could talk he would’ve imagined he’d be told to shut up, but that gesture wasn’t a “shut up”. It was definitely something else, and Neil just didn’t have the brainpower to figure it out when he felt so sleepy.

“I’m sorry if I wake you,” he added. He ended up falling asleep before Andrew could respond again.

He definitely woke up more than once that night, thankfully without a scream on his tongue but with very real fear moving through him and pain in his arms. And every time he did jerk awake, not quite making it to sit up and stay awake the rest of the night, Andrew was right there to do the same forehead bump and to let Neil pet his feathers until he felt he could breathe again. The sleep wasn’t refreshing, and it wasn’t the best night the witch had, but having someone there he cared about and that he knew cared about him made it just a little bit better.

When morning came Neil almost loathed to leave the bed because he was so comfortable. Andrew didn’t seem eager to get up either, but after both Matt and Kevin came to the door to tell them they had to get ready to leave he finally rolled out of bed(accidentally smashing his face into Andrew, who was _not_ happy). He quickly got changed, drank another potion to help his pain, and led Andrew outside towards the stables where everyone else was. That was when he finally got his cloak back, the weight comfortable against his shoulders, and when he started putting all his weapons back on his person. He paused when he got to Andrew’s arm guards.

“These saved my life, y’know,” he said to his friend, gently tightening the straps. “Or at least saved me from getting my neck bruised.” He looked up and smiled as brightly as he could manage. “Thanks.”

A few seconds of silence, then some loud honking. Andrew flew forward and bit Neil’s nose, then promptly turned and waddled away. Neil shook his head as he watched his friend go, getting to his feet and going to his horse, Esprit. One of Allison’s servants had cleaned her up from the journey, and she looked well rested after the constant movement. Neil patted her side and told her good morning, then pulled himself into the saddle and watched his friends follow suit. Andrew eventually flew to join him, but looked like he was trying to keep an angry face while doing so.

They then began their journey back. The last time they traveled this far it had taken two days with their horses at a walk. This time Neil had prepared stamina potions for their horses, allowing them to keep a much faster pace for longer. The only time they stopped was midday to eat. Around that time Andrew started the same shivering he’d done before, when Neil first realized the curse was killing him. The witch pulled out a pain potion he’d been saving for later and gave it to his friend.

“It’s not going to stop the curse,” he explained as he put the now empty vial away, “but it’ll help any pain. And don’t argue, I know it hurts and you’re just too proud to say anything about it.”

Andrew’s open beak slowly closed. Any argument he would’ve tried to voice through honks quickly died, and instead he waddled to where Neil was kneeling and did his best to bump his head to Neil’s forehead. It brought a smile to the witch’s face.

“You’re welcome,” he responded, getting to his feet again.

The potion seemed to help, given that Andrew’s shaking slowly came to a stop as they finished the last of their journey. Late in the day they made it to Foxhole, quickly rushing to the palace. The last time Neil had been in the city he’d only gone as far as Wymack’s place, so seeing the giant castle was a bit disorienting. It was much different from Evermore - instead of dark stone and tall pointed towers it was bright and...mostly square. Not an impressive castle, but more so an elegant fortress. It looked strong and secure and safe, which is what Neil thought every castle should be.

A few knights saluted to Dan, Matt and Kevin as they passed through the main gate, entering a large courtyard. Neil followed everyone in dismounting their horses, handing over the reins to some servants that ran up. Andrew honked when he reached the ground, looking around at everyone crossing the courtyard to get where they needed to. Neil bent down and held out his arms in offer, noticing the amount of people walking around that weren’t watching where they were going. Andrew hesitated for only a second before taking the offer, letting Neil carry him into the castle.

They didn’t have the time to admire what the place looked like on the inside, and Neil had no idea where they were going, but followed his friends anyways, ending up at a large room flanked by multiple guards and large oak doors. The walls were covered in paintings and tapestries, there was a large orange carpet on the stone floor and at the far end of the room was a single throne. Standing in the center of the room were Aaron and Nicky, who stopped talking as soon as the group walked in. Nicky attempted a smile when they walked through but had a crease between his eyebrows, and Aaron looked more irritated than usual.

“You’re back,” he observed. He was wearing much more expensive clothes than the previous times Neil had seen him, looking every bit the Crown Prince he was with the black cape on his back and gold crown on his head.

“We need a safe place to talk,” Kevin quickly began.

Aaron nodded. “Renee,” he said, glancing at the court magician.

Renee turned away from everyone else to face the nearest wall, raising her hands and whispering a spell to herself. Unlike Neil, who’s magic was one color, her’s was a multitude of pastels that flowed along the walls, surrounding them in a rainbow. Neil thought it looked beautiful.

“Where are we at?” Aaron asked once Renee turned back around.

“Forget that,” Nicky told him. “Neil, are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Neil tried to assure him. He hadn’t forgotten about the burns, mostly because he was starting to feel the pain again. “Don’t worry, I did this to myself.”

“That does _not_ make me feel better,” Nicky said with a stern look.

“I can explain.”

Neil quickly began to give Aaron and Nicky the rundown of what had happened on the journey. He told them about having to separate, getting caught by his father and finally managing to talk to Ichirou, who was surprisingly reasonable. He finished up by mentioning Riko’s disappearance, and how he, Kevin and Jean had to find him and bring him to Ichirou. When he finally finished his story, neither Aaron or Nicky looked happier.

“Did you hear anything about Luther?” Aaron asked.

“Oh, right: Riko was stealing magic so that he could take the throne,” Neil quickly told him. “And I’m willing to bet that Luther did the same thing. If we find where he’s keeping it, you have everything you need.”

Aaron finally relaxed, letting out a long sigh of clear relief. “Would he let it get far?”

“Not likely. It’s probably in the palace for whenever he needs to use it.”

“Then I know where it is.” Aaron straightened up, now frowning again. “I just don’t know how to find it.”

“Me and Renee can do that,” Neil offered. “Magic users can sense magic. Just take me where you think it is and I’ll find it.”

“Yes,” Aaron said, finally smiling. Not a large smile, just a tiny quirk of his lips that looked more sinister than anything, but at least he was in a better mood. “Let’s go.”

It took a minute for Aaron to gather a few guards to accompany the group on their walk to Luther’s chambers. Neil thought it took too long and had even considered offering to just go ahead and start searching on his own, but Andrew must’ve realized Neil was going to do something stupid because he honked loudly and stared at the witch still holding him until Neil no longer thought about rushing off. It wasn’t Neil’s fault, though - he was just irritated at how long everything was taking because they were on a time limit that nobody else seemed concerned about. Either that or they were just better at holding in their worries.

Either way, the group eventually made their way through the hallways to where Luther and his wife, Maria, were staying. Aaron started muttering angrily to himself as they went, which clearly wasn’t helping Nicky calm down. He seemed a weird combination of excited and terrified. Neil remembered that the twins and Nicky were cousins, so Luther had to be his dad, which...made everything so much more awkward. Neil shifted Andrew to one arm in order to reach out and pat Nicky’s bicep.

“Sorry your dad’s a treasonist asshole,” he said.

“Oh, thanks,” Nicky replied. It didn’t seem like Neil’s offer of reassurance helped at all.

When they arrived at Luther and his wife’s chambers, the guards pushed the doors open at Aaron’s command and raised their weapons towards the couple. They both looked shocked. “Aaron?” Luther asked, not taking his eyes off the guards. “What is the meaning of this?”

Aaron ignored him. “Neil,” he said, nodding towards the room.

Neil nodded and walked inside, still holding on to Andrew, who was squirming as though he was going to try and attack his uncle. Neil didn’t blame him for wanting to do that, but they had more pressing concerns. He took a deep breath and focused, sensing for magic around the room. It wasn’t hard to find, hidden within the wall on the far end. As he walked towards it Neil heard Aaron explaining why he’d burst in.

“The reason my brother is missing is because he’s cursed, Luther. He blamed you and Riko for conspiring against Palmetto and E’Allen.”

“I-I would never - !”

“You two were gathering magic in an attempt to steal the throne. Are there others trying to do the same in Vixen and Trojian?”

Neil could tell Luther was losing his composure. He and his wife looked more and more angry, but somehow Aaron didn’t seem to budge. “Aaron, think about what you’re saying. Why would Itry to steal the throne? And gathering magic - that’s impossible!”

“Really? So then Neil won’t find any hidden in your room?”

Maria stepped forward and held her hands out, as though to calm the situation. “Aaron, please calm down. You’ve been told lies, we haven’t done anything.” Neil watched her face Nicky, looking far more angry at her son than nephew. “Nicky, tell him!”

Nicky didn’t look happy at being called out. He took a step back and avoided everyone’s gazes. Andrew apparently decided that was enough because he flew from Neil’s arms towards the couple, letting out a multitude of angry honks. Both Luther and Maria immediately lost any confidence they had and fell quiet. With that, Neil turned back to the wall and reached to where he could sense the magic was hidden.

There was a stone hiding a small compartment in the wall that held three vials of red magic. Neil slowly reached towards them, feeling sympathy for whoever it had come from. He turned back towards everyone, holding up the vials and nodding at Aaron. The crown prince visibly lost the tension in his shoulders, then gave his uncle a stern look.

“Lord Luther and Lady Maria, I’m charging you with conspiring to stage a coup in the Palace of Palmetto,” Aaron told them, motioning to the guards. Without hesitation they moved forward and began to lock wrists in cuffs. “You will be tried for treason.”

Luther tried to pull away. “Aaron, I’ve only ever wanted to look out for this kingdom. To help you and - “

Andrew honked loudly again and began to rush at his uncle, flapping his wings for added effect. Luther immediately shut up and tried to back away from the angry swan, but the guards held firm and didn’t let him go anywhere. Neil would’ve thought it was funny that a grown man was terrified of a bird if that bird wasn’t Andrew. When he finally calmed down and took a few steps away, leaving both Luther and Maria in their fear stupor, the mood had clearly changed. Luther and Maria seemed defeated. Both of the brothers looked smug.

“What’s wrong?” Aaron asked. “Don’t you recognize your own nephew?”

Any fight Luther still had in him seemed to die away. Maria started crying as the guards took them out of the room. As soon as they were gone, Neil put the vials down on the large bed, looking at the red light with a frown on his face. It felt wrong to touch the vials, or to even look at the magic without its user around, but at the same time Neil couldn’t turn his gaze away. After a few seconds Andrew appeared at his side, nudging one bandaged hand with his head, bringing Neil’s attention to him. He attempted a smile.

“We did it,” he said, lightly touching the feathers on the crown of Andrew’s head. His friend replied with a soft honk, like the one he’d given late the night before. Neil looked back to the vials, then reached out to touch one with his fingertips. “I’m sorry,” he whispered, as though the user would hear.

Renee was entrusted the vials for later use in Luther and Maria’s trial. Kevin, Matt and Dan wandered off to check on the guard after saying some goodbyes. Allison went to her room in the castle, declaring she needed some rest after all the traveling and excitement. Nicky asked to be left alone for a while.

This is a long way of saying that Aaron, Neil and Andrew were left alone.

Already Neil had decided to start getting ready to head out. He’d offered up another potion for Andrew to drink for his pain since he’d started shaking again, already not liking how much they’d pushed their luck with the curse. Ever since Luther got put away he’d refused to be carried again, instead opting to waddle by Neil’s side as they walked through the palace. 

“Just find Riko?” Aaron asked as they went. Neil had talked to him about the plans he’d made with Jean about searching for Riko. “You say that like it’s easy.”

“It’s not,” Neil admitted. “But it’ll be easier than facing Ichirou was.”

They were quiet for a moment. Finally Andrew honked, staring at his brother, who sighed in irritation. “Thank you,” he told Neil. “Thank you for saving the kingdom.”

“Oh,” Neil said, a smirk slowly rising on his face. “So that’s what it’s like to get thanks from royalty.”

Aaron started glaring at him. “I’d throw you in the dungeons if Andrew wasn’t attached to you.”

Andrew let out another honk, probably to complain or call Aaron names. Neil grinned down at him, then faced the prince again. “You’re welcome,” he said. “It’s not over, though.”

“No,” Aaron agreed, still staring at his brother. “Now we have to break a curse and find a prince that wants to destroy the kingdoms.”

“Well, when you say it like that…” Neil paused for a moment. “I’m taking Andrew back to the lake tonight. If we don’t get him there soon then the curse will kill him.”

“You knew that and you brought him along anyways?”

“No, but I should’ve,” Neil admitted. He still wasn’t done beating himself up over that. “But your brother knew. He’s an idiot.”

Andrew clearly didn’t like that but couldn’t argue otherwise at the moment. “How do you plan on breaking the curse?” Aaron asked.

Shocked at the sudden change of subject, Neil shrugged. “I don’t know. Love curses are messy, remember? Besides, we have to find someone for him, first.”

Aaron narrowed his eyes. “This curse is never going to get broken,” he grumbled, walking away.

Neil thought that was a bit harsh. Andrew was a great guy: strong, caring, handsome, able to keep him safe, smart...Neil’s mind wandered back to Andrew’s biceps for a second. In short, there’s tons of things to like about Andrew and it’s rude his brother would think otherwise. By the time Neil found the words to try and say something Aaron had already left, so he decided to keep his opinions to himself. He looked down at his friend to find him staring back.

“Wanna get back?” he asked.

Andrew nodded once. With that, they started to make their way through the hallways to the stables, where they could finally head off again.

**Time left until coronation: 10 days**

**Author's Note:**

> Hi again.
> 
> Thanks for reading this fic! It's a bit shorter than the others because I wanted to focus on fluff and at the last minute decided to take out a cliffhanger. As always, I hope you enjoy this part and I really appreciate that you read it! I also didn't proofread this one as much as the others, so I hope I got all the mistakes.
> 
> Sorry this part is later than I wanted to get out. I was going to post it yesterday but then I remembered that I am a hobbit and that today's my birthday. And, in true hobbit spirit, we give gifts to others on our birthdays instead of receiving them. So here's my "gift" to y'all: more Swandrew, because everyone seems to love him, and I'm no exception. I promise very soon these boys are gonna get their heads out of their asses and finally break this stupid curse. There's 5 more parts coming, so I hope you enjoy those as well if you check them out! The next part will be out sooner, I swear.
> 
> Stay safe, wear a mask and wash your hands, my darlings!
> 
> Come talk to me on tumblr if you'd like! @jingerhead


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